Hanks has frequently been compared to Jimmy Stewart and the similarities, as even he can admit after some self-deprecation, are obvious: "I get it – it's because he was unthreatening," he says. And, like Stewart, Hanks is simply so wholesome that it's impossible not to wonder what darkness lies beneath.

Here's my top five Tom Hanks performances – but what would be on your list? Tell us about your favourite Tom Hanks film in the thread below.

1. Punchline

There are surprisingly few decent films about stand-up comedy; The King of Comedy is one major exception, and here's another. While not as dark or complex as Scorsese's film, it's nevertheless a terrifically compelling portrait of rank-and-file entertainers trying to work their way up the comedy hierarchy. Released in 1988, when Tom was still chiefly getting cast in straight-up comedies, Punchline kept the laughs, but also demonstrated that he was capable of the delivering performances with serious dramatic nuance.

Also from 1988, Big starred Tom as a 12-year old who's magically transformed into a 30-year old man. Robert De Niro was considered for the role, apparently, although it's hard to imagine him being quite as convincing as a child in a man's body.

It's easy to sneer at Forrest Gump – it's sentimental in the extreme, its politics are troublesome, and you could spend hours poking at its various flaws. However, if you can watch it and remain entirely unmoved by Forrest's triumphs and tragedies, the loss is entirely yours.

Vulgar, sexist, puerile, stupid … and more enjoyable than a hundred Philadelphias. It's often said that Tom Hanks is the new Jimmy Stewart; it's a crying shame that Jimmy Stewart never starred in a film extolling the virtues of drugs, hookers and sex donkeys.